


That Fateful Day

by ShuTodoroki



Category: Cars (Pixar Movies), Planes (Movies)
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Backstory, Blade Ranger Backstory, Character Death, Crying, Hugs, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Rick is the CHoPs director
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-31
Updated: 2020-10-31
Packaged: 2021-03-09 05:22:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,605
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27309148
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ShuTodoroki/pseuds/ShuTodoroki
Summary: When Dusty brings up how long Blade's been at Piston Peak, it brings him back to how he got there in the first place. After Nick's death, he knew that he couldn't stay with the show any longer.
Relationships: Dusty Crophopper/Blade Ranger, Nick Loopin' Lopez/Blade Ranger
Comments: 5
Kudos: 15





	That Fateful Day

"Wow, Blade, you didn't show me that move before!" Dusty exclaimed as they landed at Piston Peak Air Attack Base.

Blade chuckled. "Yeah, there's more than one way to drop retardant on a fire, Dusty." 

"Of course! You're the most experienced firefighter here. You know every way to drop retardant on a fire!" Dusty said enthusiastically.

Blade rolled his eyes. "Alright, alright. You're getting into flattering territory." He did like the air racer's enthusiasm whenever he went out firefighting. It showed that he had a passion for it, along with his racing career. 

"I mean it. You must be experienced to be the leader of the team." Dusty explained.

Blade's face fell for a few moments, as he seemed to remember something that troubled him. He quickly put on a slight smile again when he realized what had happened. "Definitely. I've been here for a while…" 

Dusty was afraid that he had said something to trouble the helicopter. "Are you okay? Was it something I said?" 

"No, it's nothing that you need to worry about." Blade dismissed.

Dusty, however, could tell that Blade was still troubled, and he was visibly anxious as his helicopter blades were rigid as opposed to relaxed, when they sagged a little. "Did you want to talk about it?" 

Blade sighed. The air racer was too nice for his own good, but maybe that was a good thing, that he was bringing it up. "Not particularly, but I've never confided in anyone about it, besides Maru." 

Dusty suddenly realized what Blade was talking about, but he'd be hearing about it from Blade himself this time. "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to, Blade." Of course, he knew, but he had a feeling that he wasn't supposed to know.

"It's fine. I'll tell you in my hangar. We don't want to be outside in the sun; it'll take a while." Blade stated as he drove towards his hangar. 

Dusty followed him as Blade's hangar doors opened, and he parked inside. The interior was identical to the other hangars at the base, and there was very little decoration on the inside. 

There was just a sleeping mat on one side of the room, group pictures with his team on a window ledge, and a single picture of him and Nick. The other pictures Blade had of Nick were probably on the wall in Maru's hangar.

"You ever heard of a show called CHoPs?" Blade asked Dusty, as he looked at him.

"Nope, why?" Dusty lied. He remembered when he watched one of the episodes with the whole team, and they all said that they didn't know why Blade quit his job as a TV star. 

It seemed that everyone, even Cad Spinner, knew that Blade was a former actor, but only Blade, Maru, and himself knew why Blade was here.

"It's probably past your generation, anyway. I was an actor in it. Yeah, I know, shocking. I had a co-star named Nick Loopin' Lopez. He wasn't just my co-star." Blade paused. "He was my best friend." He said as he recounted that fateful day.

* * *

"Okay, Nick, you're gonna do your trademark loop to distract the criminal on the highway, while Blade uses his hoist to stop the criminal." The director, Rick Roadner, explained as both Nick and Blade looked at him while on the set for the 139th episode of CHoPs. 

"Got it! I'll do an extra one for the ladies." Nick said as he smirked. 

Blade rolled his eyes. Nick, always the charmer… "If you do an extra one, Nick, we'll have to reshoot the scene. You can show off afterwards." 

Nick pouted. "You're no fun, Blade."

Blade nudged him playfully with one of his landing gear tires. "Hey, I did say you can show off all you want later when we have a break." 

"When we have a break, eh?" Nick replied. "You can count on me doing more loops than you could ever do." 

"I can do exactly zero, Nick, so that statement holds no weight." Blade replied, chuckling a bit.

"I'll teach you someday." Nick asserted as he winked. 

"I know you will. C'mon, let's do this scene." Blade beckoned. 

"Whatever you say, Blazin' Blade." Nick replied, as they both took to the air in preparation for the scene. 

"3, 2, 1, action!" Rick called out as the cameras started rolling. 

The actor playing the criminal floored it on the stretch of highway, while Nick and Blade were in hot pursuit. Nick pitched up, starting his signature loop…until a sudden crosswind blew. The crosswind caused him to blow sideways, and his blades soon made a right angle with the ground, providing him no lift.

Nick fell like a stone, and he hit the asphalt making up the highway on his right side, hard. He had no signs of movement as his blades were hanging by a thread to his roof, and his tail was badly deformed. His skids on his right side were almost non-existent.

Blade immediately descended and landed when he saw Nick crash, horror immediately rushing through his frame. "Nick? NICK!" He cried out, looking for any signs of life. "Someone call an ambulance!" 

Rick called an ambulance, as all of the surrounding staff looked on in shock. 

Blade saw Nick slowly open his eyes, and he immediately felt relieved. "B-Blade?" Nick weakly got out as he coughed.

"I'm right here, Nick. They're calling an ambulance. You'll be alright." He reassured.

"H-How bad do I look?" Nick asked.

"It's not bad." Blade lied. He didn't want Nick to know how serious the damage was, in fear that the news might put him into shock. 

"It's bad, isn't it? You've always been a bad liar, Blade…" 

"Even if it is, the ambulance is on its way." He asserted. Once the ambulance got there, Nick would arrive at the hospital, get repaired, and everything would be back to normal. Right?

"I never got to teach you…" Nick stated.

"What are you talking about?" Blade asked, afraid of the implications of what Nick said. "You will teach me how to do the loop. After you get discharged from the hospital." 

Nick was silent for a few moments, which frightened Blade. "Nick? Talk to me. Stay awake. You can make it." He asserted frantically. 

"It's been a good run, partner…" Nick said as his eyes closed, succumbing to his injuries. 

Blade's eyes widened as he heard a siren in the distance. "What? No. Nick, you'll be fine. You're…" He trailed off as Nick wasn't responding to him anymore. It wasn't true. Nick wasn't…dead. No, he was in a coma. They'd take him to the hospital and he'd be revived. Yes, that was what would happen, right? 

He backed away as EMTs tended to Nick, carefully transporting him into the ambulance, and taking him to the nearest hospital. A tear fell down the side of his fuselage as he watched the ambulance drive away. 

"We'd better meet him at the hospital. Let's go." Rick said as the film crew packed up.

Blade nodded silently as he followed the director and the rest of the film crew to the hospital. He kept on telling himself that Nick would be alright, but what Nick said to him before he lost consciousness kept replaying in his mind.

* * *

Blade paced anxiously in the hospital as he awaited news of Nick's condition.

"Blade, you're going to hit somebody with your blades if you keep pacing like that." Rick stated from behind him.

"I can't help it; I'm worried about him." Blade replied as he stopped, settling on his landing gear.

"He'll be fine, Blade, don't worry. Nick is a tough 'copter." The Escalade stated. "You did everything that you could." 

Blade turned around to look at Rick, saddened. "I can't bear the thought of losing him." 

"Then don't think about it. Nick wouldn't want to see you like this." 

“Don’t talk on behalf of Nick when he’s in a _coma._ ” Blade told Rick, offended that Rick would say such a thing. “I’m his best friend; I can’t help it that I’m worried about him.” 

“I’m worried about him too, Blade, believe me. There’s no use in worrying about it now, though. All we can do is wait for what the doctor says.” Rick replied.

Blade was hesitant, but the Escalade and director had a point. “I suppose…” He looked anxiously at the clock. It had been an hour since they arrived; he hoped they had managed to stabilize Nick.

A few hours later, a doctor came out of the doors leading to the wards. Blade perked up, expecting good news, but he started to doubt whether that was true when the doctor looked extremely stoic. “Are you two Blade Ranger and Rick Roadner? I am Dr. Stevenson.”

“Yes, what is the news on Nick?” Rick asked quickly.

The doctor’s stoic countenance turned sorrowful. “I’m sorry, Mr. Ranger and Mr. Roadner, but Nick did not make it. He’s dead.” 

Blade looked at the doctor with a blank expression for a while, his brain not being able to register what he had said, until reality suddenly dawned upon him. “No, that’s not true.” He was in denial. Nick wasn’t dead. He couldn’t be dead. He wouldn’t accept that reality. 

“Nick was in a deep coma while we tried to resuscitate him. He died peacefully.” Dr. Stevenson tried to console. 

Rick was speechless with shock, before he gave a resigned sigh. “I understand that you and your team did everything to save him. Thank-” He started, but Blade was having none of it.

“Your job is to save lives, isn’t it? But you couldn’t save Nick?” Blade accused, on the brink of tears. 

“Blade, don’t blame the medical staff.” Rick reprimanded.

“No, no, it’s alright.” Dr. Stevenson interrupted. “I’m very sorry for your loss, Mr. Ranger, but Nick’s injuries were too severe.” 

Blade was about to say more, but shut his mouth in defeat as he started to weep. He knew that from the state Nick was in after the crash, that he had very little chance of making it. He just didn’t acknowledge it until now, because he was afraid of doing so.

“I-I’m sorry…” Blade apologized between sobs. “You tried everything…”

Dr. Stevenson nodded. “I understand that this is a very trying time for you both. Would you like to be left alone?”

Blade didn’t respond as he wept, so Rick answered for him. “That would be great, thank you.” 

Dr. Stevenson nodded as he left the waiting room to head back to the wards, leaving Blade and Rick alone.

Rick waited for Blade to cry himself out, since he wouldn’t listen to him until he was calm. 

Blade sniffled as he slowly stopped crying. “He died because of me…”

Rick’s eyes widened as he heard Blade say that. “Blade, what are you talking about? His death was not your fault. You couldn’t have done anything.” 

“That’s my point!” He shouted in anger, causing a few of the hospital staff and others waiting to look at him, but he didn’t notice. “I couldn’t do anything. I didn’t know how to save him. All I could tell him is that he’d be fine. I _lied_ to him!” 

Rick stayed calm as he tried to console the traumatized helicopter. “No, you didn’t. You were by his side until he became unconscious. That’s admirable.” 

“You know what’s not admirable? The fact that I spend my life pretending to save lives when I couldn’t even save Nick.” He replied as he blinked back tears. “His life is over; mine is too.” 

“Blade, don’t. This is all very trying, especially for you and I, but don’t blame yourself.” 

“I was the first one on the scene, and I could do nothing but stand there, waiting for an ambulance that arrived too late! What is there not to blame myself for?”

“Nick wouldn’t want you to blame yourself.”

Blade lost it when Rick said that. “There you go again trying to speak for Nick when he’s _dead!_ ”

Rick immediately realized that he had said the wrong thing. “I didn’t mean it that way. You have your whole life ahead of you, though.”

“Life of what? Pretending to save more lives with a new co-star? Is that what you were planning?” Blade questioned, glaring at Rick.

“No, we were going to take a hiatus, in his honor.” Rick explained.

Blade didn’t care about whether CHoPs was going to have a hiatus or not. “You were just going to write his death into an episode, replace him with someone new, and pretend nothing happened? Is that it?” 

Rick was going to protest what Blade said, but lying would probably make the situation worse. “We all have to move on at some point, Blade.”

Blade growled as he had a determined look on his face. “In that case, Rick, it’s time for me to move on from CHoPs.” He said as he started to turn around on his landing gear.

Rick’s mouth was agape at what Blade had just said, and he quickly moved to stop the helicopter from leaving. “Wait, Blade, let’s talk about this…”

“What is there to talk about, Rick? I’m not going to keep on pretending to save lives when I can save them for real.” Blade stated, surprisingly calm.

“But you have your whole acting career ahead of you! You’re going to give it up, just like that?” 

“My acting career means nothing if I’m not content doing it. I’m not going to mourn for what, a month? Is that how long you were planning the hiatus for? Then I’d go back to the show and move on without him, like you want. I want what I do to be in his honor.”

Rick was frantic as he tried to persuade Blade to stay. “By continuing the show you are doing something in his honor! You’re continuing his legacy of being an integral part of the show.” 

“By staying with the show, I’m throwing what purpose I had in my life out the door. By actually saving lives for once, I won’t make the same mistake I did with Nick. That is in his honor.” He started driving towards the door again. 

“Wait, Blade, please. Think about it some more. Sit on it before you make any rash decisions.” Rick pleaded.

“I’ve already made up my mind, Rick. Goodbye.” Blade drove out the door, never looking back.

* * *

“After that, I got trained as a firefighter. Chose it because it fit me best as a helicopter. Got certified, stationed here, and that’s why I’m here today.” Blade finished.

Dusty was speechless for a while before he spoke, taking in what Blade just told him. “Wow, Blade, I never knew…” He felt like that was a dumb response for the bombshell Blade just dropped, but he really had no other way of reacting at the moment.

“Yeah, now you know, Crophopper.”

“Do you feel like what you do gives you, you know, new purpose in life?” Dusty asked curiously.

“I like saving lives for real nowadays, and I think Nick would be proud of me.” Blade replied. 

“I’m sure he is, Blade.” Dusty asserted.

Blade let a single tear run down his fuselage as he looked at Dusty. “Thanks, Dusty. I appreciate it.”

Dusty rushed over to hug Blade with his landing gear when he saw him cry, thinking that he said something wrong again. “Did I say something to make you upset? I’m-” 

He was interrupted as Blade returned the hug and chuckled. “No, Dusty, I’m happy.”


End file.
